I haven’t submitted any of my writing for publication yet, but when I do, I’ll get rejection letters just like every other writer does. It’s part of the process. The rejection process in the writing world is treated much differently than rejection in every other area of life. With the exception of a few naive folks, we writers know that rejection is normal. Our treatment of rejection is as varied as the writers themselves. Some writers wallow in rejection, swearing never to write anything again but find themselves writing anyway, something I think everyone has been guilty of at some point. Some folks celebrate rejection; that rejection letter is one more accomplished obstacle between the writer and an acceptance, right? I’ve even heard of one writer who tacked all her rejection letters to the bathroom wall.
Yes, a chair. She decorated the chair with her rejections and later, the rejections of others, until the chair was a straight-backed uncomfortable piece of rejection. Part of me wants to do that myself.
Another part of me wants to figure out something completely different when my own rejection letters (or email, which may be more likely) start coming in.
One reply on “The rejection chair”
I have never submitted my work for publication either, but I would definitely feel bad if I got a rejection letter! You’re right, though! Rejection is part of the process and we need to learn to accept that our writing is not always something publishers are looking for. So we need to move on and continue to write until one day we receive an ACCEPTANCE letter and then it’s time for us to throw a party. Haha!